Fall turkey HELP/UPDATED W Story

[Jcubed]

Well, here's how it all started. Slowly I have been getting my girlfriend more and more involved in outdoor and shooting activities. After I put in for the fall hunts, I asked her if there was anything she would like to try and hunt... I was absolutely floored when she said she wanted to hunt turkey.

 

Well, having missed putting in for the draw I explained that we may be able to get some leftover tags but that the units probably wouldn't be the best. She said she didn't care so we put in for and drew 6B turkey tags in the leftover draw.

 

Well long story short, I have no idea what I am doing in respect to fall turkey hunting. We've been out scouting a few times so far and have only seen a couple sets of tracks at water holes. I know that the fall hunts arent during the breeding season so calling is not an effective technique. So any advice on how to hunt these birds?

 

Should I focus on finding water somewhere far from the roads and just have her sit it all day? Can I pattern turkeys or are they too nomadic in their territories to know where they will be at a given time?

 

I've explained to her my lack of turkey knowledge but she is still really excited so I just want her to have the best hunt possible. She's really adventurous (her first camping experience was a backpacking trip into the west clear creek wilderness area) and I never thought I would have a gf who would share my love of the outdoors.

 

Thanks in advance for any advice on hunting turkeys in the fall.

[oz31p]

for starters your lady sounds like a keeper try not to screw up and lose her.

 

 

 

 

as for turkeys, ive drawn 2 turkeys tags in my life. one in 22 and one in 27. both were fall hunts and both were successful hunts. i was unfamiliar with both units when i drew the tags. in my opinion the key to fall turkeys more so than other game is successful scouting. once youcan find an active turkey area your golden. they are quite nomadic but with in there fairly small home range.

 

and pattern you shogun with multiple loads.

 

i shoot a mossburg 835 w/ a federal 3 1/2in mag with copper plated number 4 shot w/ flight control wad. in my gun they patterned 20" at 80yard with an ulta full turkeys choke. both bird were taken with one shot right at 50.

 

both hunts my dad did not pattern his gun for a load. and ended up using my gun to fill his tag later in the hunt because after opening day i did not need it.

 

 

ive never hunted any thing in 6b. but im sure here are turkeys in there.

[Couzer]

There is a great DVD out there called Speak The Language by Primos about turkey hunting!!! I say this because they have a instructional part on how to call turkeys even in the fall. The call you probably want to focus on in the Kee-Kee which imitates a younger bird that is lost. Given that mainly the hens will come into this call. You will need a mouth call, they work great.

 

If you do end up seeing a flock of birds, try running into the middle of they scattering the birds all over then sit for 5-10 minutes in the middle and start Kee kee calling. Generally they will come back to where you are at.

 

Water in the fall is a hit and miss, depends on the dew on the fall grass and how dry it is. Turkeys genrally can get enough water from the moisture on the plants in the early mornings.

 

Look for over turned cow patties, they eat the bugs under them, scratches on the ground.

 

There is a member on here called littlecreekcalls, he is a call maker and has killed over 25 tukeys or so. Not bad considering hes about 33-34 in age. PM him and im sure he can tell you more.

 

just my cents. Im sure there's alot of members on here that know a ton.

[bowhuntaz1]

There is a great DVD out there called Speak The Language by Primos about turkey hunting!!! I say this because they have a instructional part on how to call turkeys even in the fall. The call you probably want to focus on in the Kee-Kee which imitates a younger bird that is lost. Given that mainly the hens will come into this call. You will need a mouth call, they work great.

 

If you do end up seeing a flock of birds, try running into the middle of they scattering the birds all over then sit for 5-10 minutes in the middle and start Kee kee calling. Generally they will come back to where you are at.

 

Water in the fall is a hit and miss, depends on the dew on the fall grass and how dry it is. Turkeys genrally can get enough water from the moisture on the plants in the early mornings.

 

Look for over turned cow patties, they eat the bugs under them, scratches on the ground.

 

There is a member on here called littlecreekcalls, he is a call maker and has killed over 25 tukeys or so. Not bad considering hes about 33-34 in age. PM him and im sure he can tell you more.

 

just my cents. Im sure there's alot of members on here that know a ton.

 

Thanks Vowell. I also have a fall turkey tag. This is my 3rd tag, and have yet to tag a bird. I sent him a PM.

[KaibabHunter]

I'm not gonna lie I don't have much turkey experience but I did find quite a few while deer hunting. I found them roosting in draws on the north slope higher elevations in the pines. I had some roost right over me and some up the hill a little farther in the same draw multiple nights. They came down hill in the last 30 mins of light and they'd come off the roost right at first light. U could here them makin a ruckus as they fly into the roost and they would gobble a few times in the morning before coming off. When they came off they seemed to always fly and move uphill off the roost.

 

If ur girlfriend goes with on the scouting trips maybe each take a draw and listen for those clues or them movin out of the draws early and late to locate roosts. Just from my recent experience...

[muzzlehunter75]

I would find water, and look for tracks, then spend your time coming up with a game plan! Good luck, my wife has a turkey tag in 9, we plan on sitting some tanks!

[Jcubed]

Thanks a lot for the advice. It really is appreciated. We should be going up to scout so I will let you all know what we find. Thanks again!

[Jcubed]

Hey all...little update from the truck out in 6b. It's been raining off and on all day, even had a little hail. Haven't seen any turkeys but the bulls are screaming so that's always fun as the girlfriend hasn't heard it before.

 

At the end of today we were sitting a ridge and I heard some flapping almost sounded like clapping. Figured it might be a turkey roosting so we walked towards the sound and I heard the same sound again. Not much but it was nice. Figure we get up there at first light and see what we find.

 

Hope everyong is having a good one.

[elkster9]

So how did you do?

[billrquimby]

I used to enjoy the fall hunts, but it was before they were shotgun-only. Back then, I glassed the big cienegas above the cabin until I found birds feeding, then got to within 200 yards or so and used a light load from my .22-250.

 

If I were forced to hunt turkeys in the fall now, I would have no idea where to start.

 

Bill Quimby

[Coach]

Those things can be darn hard to find in the fall. A buddy of mine is hunting 3C and has yet to see a turkey. I went out Sunday for a drive and found where what looked like a zillion of them had crossed the road and fed into a creek bottom within the last couple hours. Gave him a call and told him about it, but when he went back he found nothing but the tracks and sign I had seen.

 

It seems like they are in huge flocks right now, all moving together. If you find one, you find a bunch. But it's not like Spring where they are scattered everywhere.

[Jcubed]

Ok, sorry to keep you all in suspense but work has been very busy since getting back. Here is the story from my phone so please excuse some spelling and grammatical mistakes.

 

The gf and I headed out late Sunday night for our three scheduled days of turkey hunting. The weather forecast said lots of wind and scattered thunderstorms for the three days. Well I arrived at the dirt road at about 3am and started the drive into the unit. From scouting I knew of a couple tanks where we saw tracks but just didn't have the energy to drive that far. So I turned off short at a road I knew backed up to one of the larger hills in the unit. Camp that night was set up quickly in the back of the truck and we decided since it was past 4am to just sleep in the first morning.

 

Well we finally get up and get set out into the woods. Beautiful windy day in the woods. We hiked through the flats trying to find the elusive turkey with no luck. After a big loop of hiking the gf wasn't feeling very well so we called it a day and headed back to the truck. At the truck we decided we needed to get some aspirin for her (I forgot it) and change locations. Well as we were driving out I saw something in the mud and got out to look. Sure enough relatively fresh tracks right on the road near where we were camped. It was the best sign we had seen, even better than the tracks at the tanks during scouting. Thus the decision was made...into town for the supplies and then back to the same camp.

 

About dusk that night I went for a quick hike up the mountain and saw a few objects out of my peripheral vision run up the mountain. I didn't get a good look but thought they may have been turkey. I hiked back to camp and relayed the news to my hunting partner...she was excited even though she didn't feel well. I asked if she wanted to go home but she was adamant that we stay and hunt.

 

Day two we awaken to rain, thunder, and the gf really not feeling well. So we decide to do the unthinkable and drive on some roads and see if we can find any other sign or even hear any shots (haven't heard anything so far). Well luckily this was our decision as we were hit by hail and rain off and on all day. About four we get back to camp and I decide to head out and Mina decides to come with and I show her where I thought I saw the turkey. Well we continue to hike up the mountain and as dark is setting in I hear large wing beats going into a tree up the ridge. We decide to wake up before dawn and head up to the trees we thought the turkey were in, needless to say we were excited.

 

Day 3

 

Well, our alarm died in the night and I open my eyes to 624am and the sun shining bright all around us. Needless to say I'm disappointed as I think that morning was our best opportunity at a turkey. Well we decide to go hiking anyway and start climbing the hill where we heard the turkey. Well as we are climbing the elk are bugling like crazy. It was the girlfriends first time hearing this so we decide to try and find them. As we are heading towards the bugles we see a big muley buck and about twenty does. Then we find the elk, in all we probably saw about two hundred elk throughout the morning. Well we hike back toward the truck over the mountain back to a meadow up on top and the gf says...what is that? Yeltsin over beneath a tree and picks up a beautiful feather. I've already passed by this spot and then she says there are tins of feathers and droppings here. Needless to say I went right back and couldn't believe my eyes. She had found turkey sign.

 

We discussed it and decided we would go back to the truck for a good lunch and come back up to this meadow and just sit it as this was our best bet for the last afternoon. Well after lunch begins the hike back to the meadow. We get there and I set up some branches to break up our outline and get settled.

 

The next few hours were awesome. We watched squirrels run through the trees and Chase each other. Then the gf squeezes my hand and three mule deer does and two yearlings walk right up to us about thirty feet away. It was pretty cool watching them feed and play not knowing we were there. Then I hear something like scratching on a screen door so I turn to my left and can't believe my eyes...turkey.

 

My girlfriend is facing the other direction and I try to grab here but I can't reach...ah the agony. Earlier in the hunt we both agreed that if either of us were presented a shot we would take it. So I brought the gun up and put my sights on the first turkey and wait for it to step out from a downed tree. When it stepped out I squeezed the trigger and my first Arizona big game animal was on the ground. I watched as one bird flew into a tree and tried to get my gf a shot but it just didn't materialize.

 

Needless to say we were both on cloud nine. Going into the hunt we didn't have any expectations of success but we had hunted and hiked hard and were rewarded.

 

I really have to thank my gf for finding all those feathers and the sign. Without her and her amazing huntress ability we never would have found the birds. She is also hooked on hunting, camping, and hiking through the woods, smelling the smells and seeing the sights. I couldn't be happier.

 

I hope this was a good enough tale of turkey amateurs in Arizona. We had a great time in the woods and I hope I conveyed just a bit of our amazing adventure to you the reader.

 

John

[Jcubed]

Well we had roast turkey two nights ago and turkey noodles soup last night. Tonight turkey and dumplings! I was actually surprised at how good the bird tasted.

[kphunter]

Congrats, great story! Any pics?

[Shanachie]

Awesome story. I'm slowly trying to get my wife interested. What a great experience to have together.